Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Chris Walden Big Band - No Bounds
by David Franklin, Jazz Times, November 2006
Although he ended up losing to Dave Holland and Gordon Goodwin, respectively, the German-born composer-arranger Chris Walden was recently nominated for Grammy Awards for best large jazz ensemble album and best instrumental arrangement. No Bounds is the follow-up to Home of My Heart, the album that brought him such acclaim. A compositional virtuoso has also scored dozens of films and provided charts for numerous performers in pop... read more
Dmitri Matheny - Cascadia
by Carol Banks Weber, Coggie Ink
Dmitri Matheny doesn't ask a lot of you, dear listener. The WA-based jazz flugelhornist and composer does all the work, behind the scenes and in front of the mic — on bandstands across America and in the studio — so you can focus solely on the music and musical stories, anecdotes, and tone poems that move him, from time-honored ballads and stellar soundtracks, to his personal obsession and personal best, jazz noir.
You should see his... read more
Dan Cray - Meridies
by Bob Doerschuk, Downbeat, October 2012
****
Listening to Dan Cray and his group, one is reminded that underplaying can cast more light than a sky full of fireworks. That's not to say that there aren't busy moments on Meridies; there are plenty, especially in ostinati that the piano and bass play in unison to build momentum and sometimes to thread intricate rhythms together. But these occur only where they makes sense. Even with such elements, an impression of spaciousness... read more
Ira Sullivan & Stu Katz - A Family Affair - Live at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase
by Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
Multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan spent a good while working around Chicago before leaving for Florida in the early '60s, though he retained a significant fan base in his old hometown. This live recording made in 2010 over four nights at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase is a reunion, featuring vibraphonist Stu Katz, who while in his teens had regularly sat in with Sullivan over a half-century earlier before pursuing a law career. Joining them in the... read more
Carlos Vega - Art of the Messenger
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
Tenor saxophonist Carlos Vega is a steeped-in-the-tradition fan of early bebop, displaying his passion for the genre with his nods to alto saxophonist Charlie Parker on Bird's Ticket (2016) and Bird's Up (2017), both on Origin Records. With Art Of The Messenger he shifts his focus to Art Blakey, the drummer who led the Jazz Messengers from 1955 onward for thirty-five years, helping define—in the early years—the hard bop Blue Note Records... read more
Kelly Sill / Jim McNeely / Joel Spencer - Boneyard
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
I'd take the bet that a good percentage of jazz fans�those of my generation, at least�got their start in jazz via Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Art Blakey and Dave Brubeck, mainly piano/bass/drum rhythm sections behind one or more horns. And I can remember wondering why Miles, Cannonball Adderley and John Coltrane sat out on "Billy Boy" on Miles' classic album, Milestones, (Columbia, 1958), letting pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers and... read more
Nanami Haruta - The Vibe
by Dee Dee McNeil, Making a Scene
Nanami Haruta is a new trombone voice on the jazz scene. She's been a professional jazz musician since the age of fifteen.
"I started playing trombone at school when I was eight years old in a band of elementary school students playing jazz, which is rare in Japan," the young lady explains.
In 2019, Nanami Haruta won the most Outstanding Student Award at the Seiko Summer Jazz Camp in Tokyo. She also garnered the attention of trombone... read more
speak - Speak
by Jon Solomon, All About Jazz
Forward-thinking trumpeter Cuong Vu has performed with the likes of Pat Metheny, Laurie Anderson and David Bowie. He's toured the world and released four albums under his own name. After a stint in New York, Vu moved back to the Northwest, where he is now assistant professor of jazz studies at the University of Washington.
It's there at UW that he coached an ensemble that included members of Speak. After mentoring the students -- saxophonist... read more
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